Capítulo 13: Chapter 13: The Deteriorating condition.
"We should set off right once you're done eating." Ruby declared as she gazed at the blizzard outside.
With one swipe, Julius consumed all the meat on the skewer.
"Already? Won't it be better to wait for Ava to wake up before we head off?" He asked after he finished chewing. "Her ability is powerful, it'll make moving around easier."
"About that…" Ruby muttered, her eyes glancing at Ava. "I thought it would be fine if we warmed her up and let the elixir do its thing but her condition doesn't seem to be improving."
Their eyes flickered to Ava.
"What do you mean? Her wounds are healed, are they not?" Julius asked as he crouched down beside Ava, checking her injuries.
"They're healed but she's burning up with a fever, her heart rate is becoming unstable and her breaths are turning faint. If the elixir had truly been effective, she shouldn't have experienced any of these symptoms."
Julius crouched down beside Ava checking for the symptoms that Ruby had mentioned, she was right.
He grit his teeth in frustration.
"In other words, her condition is slowly deteriorating, is what you're trying to say…"
Ruby nodded as she got up and walked towards the cave's entrance.
"The elixir bought us some time, but at this rate her condition will continue to worsen. She's slowly dying… Normally the smart thing to do would be to leave this Labyrinth the same way we came but that's not possible because of the teleportation circle."
Julius slowly lifted Ava and handed her over to Lyra to place her on her back. Julius knew she would be far safer with Lyra rather than him.
"Meaning our only hope out of here is by advancing." He said.
Ruby nodded.
"Then… Lyra, you're strong so you carry Ava... Ruby, we'll protect them while creating a path forward through the monsters. Can you both handle that?"
Lyra nodded.
"I won't let go of her even if it kills me." She declared.
"And I won't let a threat lay their hands on either of them." Claimed Ruby with a smile.
Julius let out a sigh of relief.
'Having them both by my side eases the pressure a little. Everything will be fine, just like before.'
"Then, let's go. I'll stop the blizzard with my domain and i'll make you all impervious to my curse effects."
Both girls nodded, having already been prepared to leave whenever the situation arose.
"But before that, Ruby. Use your dark flames to warm us up." Said Julius
"Dark flames?" Ruby asked, somewhat confused.
Lyra pointed at the campfire.
"Those dark flames that have been burning despite the cold, they're a part of your ability aren't they?"
"Oh- that. Well… it's not exactly…" She smiled nervously. "You guys still haven't seen my ability in action, have you? It'll be easier to show you." Said Ruby before walking out into the blizzard.
As soon as she was far enough inside the snowy forest, Ruby stretched her palm out, making sure it faced her shadow.
[Necromancy Manipulation: Rise Undead.]
Her shadow expanded at that moment, covering some of the area beneath her.
"Arise… Undying Flames… Dawn."
Even though she was 50 meters away, Julius and Lyra both felt a surge of steam blowing towards them, causing their hair to sway.
Ruby's eyes glowed a brighter shade of red as a figure arose from her shadow.
Lyra and Julius watched as the surrounding snow began to boil, releasing even more steam.
In the center of all the steam stood a single humanoid figure on a knee. Dark flames covered its body from head to toe. There were no eyes or mouth on its face, just two white circular flames at the center.
"So she's a necromancer… It's my first time seeing an ability like this." Lyra muttered as she gazed at its figure.
"...an ability that can manipulate the dead… I wonder if it can...' Julius shook his head.
Upon receiving Ruby's instructions, the flaming figure slowly got up before bursting through the snow up into the distance.
It moved fast, it's figure distancing itself from Ruby before stopping another 50 meters ahead of her. It left a line of melted snow and burning trees behind.
They were surrounded by trees that were on fire, which caused even more steam to be released as the snow began to melt even faster.
The cold became slightly more bearable despite the blizzard.
"What did you order it to do?" Julius asked as he and Lyra approached her.
"I told it to keep a distance of a fifty metres ahead of us, that way we could still feel its heat even while inside of the blizzard." Ruby responded with her back turned to them as she breathed heavily.
Julius who had grabbed a hold of Ruby, quickly let go of her after receiving a sharp throb.
*Tsss*
He had burnt it. Her skin was hot to the touch. He grabbed her, holding it tight despite the burning sensation in his hands. and turned her towards him before narrowing his eyes.
*Tssss!*
When he turned her towards him, he narrowed his eyes.
Her skin had become light tone of red, steam was slowly coming out of her figure as she continued to breathe heavily.
"You realise you're burning, right?" Julius asked ignoring the sound of his own hands burning.
"Yeah. It's why I rarely bring it out. Even though it's one of the weaker ones, its fires can damage me making it a hassle and is a pain to control.." She shrugged her shoulders.
"Why didn't you tell us?"
"Because I can heal through it. It's not that bad once you get used to it. More importantly, your hands are burning, Let go-"
"Don't ever do that again."
Julius interrupted her, he looked pissed off about something.
"Huh? Why?"
He averted his eyes and clicked his tongue before walking ahead.
"Just don't."
[Nightmare Level 1: Nightmare Domain.]
Above their heads, the sky turned pitch black and in its centre rested a waxing crescent moon.
The blizzard was quickly cut off, leaving only the burning trees and melting snow in the path ahead as they marched through them.
In the snowy woods, Julius silently walked ahead of the two girls, his mood sour.
Watching this, Ruby looked over at Lyra, who looked a bit worried.
"Are you sure you're okay?" Lyra asked, as she stared at the steam being released from Ruby's body.
"Yeah… It still hurts a bit but nothing unbearable… More importantly, what's up with him?"
Julius wasn't saying anything, he walked ahead silently.
"Don't worry too much, he'll calm down soon. He just hates it when someone he cares about gets hurt for his sake…"
'His real family died protecting him after all…' Lyra thought to herself.
Ruby slowly turned to him.
'Someone he cares about… Does that mean I'm someone he cares about?' She thought to herself.
"Hm~" She smiled cheekily as her cheeks reddened slightly.
Having no other choice, the three of them advanced through the snow-covered fields surrounded by flaming trees.
Presentes
-- Presente
recebido Status de energia semanal
-- Ranking de
Poder 
-- Pedra de
Poder